Vertical cable management rack

ABSTRACT

A vertical cable raceway for routing cables to electronic equipment includes a trough having a base member and two side members and at least one separable cable guide installed on the edge of a side member. The cable guide includes a plurality of projections forming cable rings for guiding cables laterally from the side of the trough.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of and thus is entitled to the benefitof, and claims priority to, non-provisional U.S. patent application Ser.No. 09/954,344, filed Sep. 17, 2001 and entitled “VERTICAL CABLEMANAGEMENT RACK,” the entirety of which is hereby incorporated byreference. In addition, this application is entitled to the benefit of,and claims priority to, U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 60/233,203,filed Sep. 15, 2000 and entitled “VERTICAL CABLE MANAGEMENT RACK,” theentirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of racks forsupporting computer and other electronic equipment, and moreparticularly to the field of enclosed vertical cable raceways having amultitude of cable rings formed in the sides thereof for preciselyrouting cables and wires to equipment stored in the rack.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Racks, frames, cabinets and the like for supporting computer and otherelectronic equipment are very well known. Similarly, raceways forrouting cables and wires to and from that equipment are likewise wellknown. In particular, a number of raceways have been proposed forrouting cables, wires and the like (generally referred to hereinafter as“cables”) vertically through or adjacent to equipment racks, frames,cabinets and the like (generally referred to hereinafter as “racks”).Such raceways may be used to route cables vertically to equipmentmounted or otherwise supported on a rack from other equipment on therack, from overhead or underfloor raceway, or the like. These cables aregenerally routed in the vertical direction to a point adjacent to thedesired equipment and then routed in the horizontal direction to thedesired equipment.

An important characteristic of such raceways is the presence of aplurality of openings in the sides of the raceway through which cablesmay be routed, thereby facilitating more convenient access between theequipment and the interior of the raceway. For example, U.S. Pat. No.2,921,607 to Caveney (“Caveney”) and U.S. Pat. No. 3,705,949 to Weiss(“Weiss”) each disclose a covered wiring duct or wireway which includesside walls having a series of finger-like projections separated byopenings. The cables may be routed through the openings by bending themaround the projections, thus allowing the cables to be routed withrelative precision, and preventing cables from hanging loosely acrossthe face of the rack itself. A gap at the distal ends of each pair ofadjacent projections permits cables to be inserted into each respectiveopening. The gap is narrower than the opening, thus aiding in theretention of the cables within the opening. The distal ends of all theprojections may then be covered by a cover, thus providing furtherretention capability.

Unfortunately, both the Caveney and the Weiss designs suffer from anumber of drawbacks, including most particularly the relatively limitedsize of the openings. The openings between the Caveney projections areonly approximately as large as the size of the projections themselves,and the openings between the Weiss projections, although of a somewhatunusual shape, are actually even smaller in area than the projections.Such small openings are frequently inadequate to handle the large numberof cables that are frequently routed horizontally from a certainelevation on a vertical raceway to the equipment mounted thereon. Thus,vertical raceways having larger openings are required. Further, if acover is to be installed on the Caveney or Weiss raceways, it must becarefully aligned with all of the distal ends of the projections andpressed into place, and no provision is made to allow the cover to behinged open once installed.

More recently, a number of raceways have been developed having a smallnumber of widely spaced fingers or other retention members projectingfrom a trough. Between each pair of adjacent projections is a wideopening which is many times larger than the width of the projections,such that a raceway for a full height rack might have only six or eightsets of projections. Unfortunately, because so few projections areavailable for the cables to be routed around, this type of raceway doesnot allow cables to be routed as precisely as with the Caveney and Weisstype of raceway, there is a much greater chance of cables danglingloosely, and/or cables of greater length must be used in order to reacha projection before being bent toward the desired equipment.

Still more recently, a new vertical raceway has been made available byPanduit Corp. The Panduit raceway utilizes a PVC trough attached to asteel base. The trough includes a base member and a plurality of narrowfinger-like side members extending perpendicularly therefrom. A slit,narrower in width than the fingers, is formed between each pair ofadjacent fingers for routing cables therethrough, similar to the Caveneydesign. Barbs at the distal ends of the fingers limit access to theslits to only a narrow gap, thereby preventing cables which have beeninstalled in the slits from accidentally becoming dislodged.Advantageously, each finger is scored near the base member so that itmay easily be broken off and removed, thereby creating a wider openingfor receiving cables. A hingeable cover may be attached to the distalends of the remaining fingers by clipping a plurality of hinges inbetween the tips of the fingers and attaching the cover thereto. Theraceway may be attached to the side of a rack to route cables toelectronic components mounted on or in the rack by guiding the cablesvertically to a location adjacent to the selected component and thenthrough one of the openings formed between the fingers.

Unfortunately, the Panduit raceway still suffers from a number ofdrawbacks. First, once fingers are broken off of the Panduit raceway tocreate larger openings, they cannot be replaced. Further, if one or morefingers is broken off to create a larger opening, the gap between thefingers which remain to define the opening is quite large, with verylittle material or structure remaining to retain the cables in theopening, other than the raceway cover. Also, the Panduit cover may beattached only using hinge members which are each mounted on the distalends of a pair of adjacent fingers, rather than to the trough itself,thus increasing the risk of mechanical failure, particularly as thecover is opened and closed.

The Panduit, Caveney and Weiss raceways include other drawbacks as well.For example, the unibody construction of the side walls limits theconstruction and relative dimensions of the projections and the openingscreated thereby because the projections must be formed from the samematerial as the rest of the walls, and, in the case of Panduit andCaveney, from the same material as the base of the trough. In addition,the unibody construction limits the installation flexibility otherwiseavailable if the projections could be selectively disposed at variouslocations along the raceway without affecting the body of the racewayitself.

Perhaps most significantly, none of the cable rings formed in the sidesof known prior art raceways are arranged to align precisely with theequipment mounting locations on the racks to which the raceways areattached. It is well known that the vertical dimension of racks isfrequently measured in standardized units. The most common unit ofmeasurement is the “rack mounting unit” (“RMU”). An RMU is commonlydefined as 1.75 inches in height. Electrical components as well asaccessories, which include horizontal raceways, patch panels, and thelike, are also commonly measured in RMU's. For example, a 2 RMUcomponent is one which is 3.50 inches or less in height. Thus, a rackwhich has 45 RMU may accommodate components and accessories totaling 45RMU. Further, to conserve space, components and accessories arefrequently installed only at vertical locations corresponding to a wholenumber of RMU's in order to avoid interfering with adjacent componentsand accessories.

Unfortunately, none of the known prior art raceways take thisarrangement into consideration. Thus, the cable rings or similarstructures provided on prior art vertical raceways are not properlyaligned with the equipment and accessories to which they must route thecables. As a result, the shortest path from the interior of the racewayto the equipment or accessory destination is frequently blocked by thebody of one of the finger-like projections. Moreover, smaller componentsand accessories may not have any cable rings whatsoever disposed next tothem. For high density wiring routes, cable rings may becomeunnecessarily overcrowded because they must be diverted through othercable rings. Thus, a need exists for a cable raceway having cable ringsdisposed at a standardized interval which corresponds to the mountinglocations of the equipment and accessories stored in the rack.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Briefly summarized, the present invention relates to vertical cableraceways for precisely routing cables to electronic components atparticular elevations in a cabinet, frame or other mounting rack.Broadly defined, the cable raceway according to one aspect of thepresent invention includes: a trough having a base member and two sidemembers; and at least one separable cable guide installed on the edge ofa side member, the cable guide including a plurality of projectionsforming cable rings for guiding cables laterally from the side of thetrough.

In features of this raceway, the cable rings are disposed relative toeach other at an interval corresponding to a standard rack mountingunit; the interval is exactly one standard rack mounting unit; adimension of each cable ring is selected to correspond to a standardrack mounting unit; the trough is made from a first material, which maybe a metal, and the cable guide is made from a second material, whichmay be a plastic; a side member includes an aperture, and the cableguide includes a correspondingly-disposed boss for mating with theaperture when the cable guide is installed on the side member; the cableguide includes at least two planar members forming a channeltherebetween, and an edge of a side member is disposed in the channelwhen the cable guide is installed on the side member; one of the planarmembers is a planar flange extending generally the length of the cableguide; another of the planar members is a tab which may be one of aseries of tabs aligned along the cable guide; the cable guide includes apositioning boss for guiding the cable guide into place on the sidemember; and a side member includes a slot extending toward the cableguide and the positioning boss is adapted to engage with the slot.

In a second aspect of the present invention, a cable raceway for routingcables to electronic equipment includes: a trough having a base memberand two side members, at least one of the side members including aprimary longitudinal portion extending from the base member and asecondary longitudinal portion, the secondary longitudinal portion beinginwardly offset from the primary longitudinal portion; and a cableguide, including a plurality of projections, disposed along a distaledge of the secondary longitudinal portion and extending in a directiongenerally perpendicular to the base member of the trough, wherein thecable guide extends laterally beyond the secondary longitudinal portion,and wherein the primary longitudinal portion extends laterally beyondthe cable guide.

In features of the second aspect, the primary and secondary longitudinalportions are planar in form and the primary and secondary longitudinalportions are generally parallel to each other; the cable guide includesa channel and a distal edge of the secondary longitudinal portion isdisposed within the channel; a second side member includes a primarylongitudinal portion extending from the base member and a secondarylongitudinal portion inwardly offset from the primary longitudinalportion, wherein a second cable guide includes a plurality ofprojections and is disposed along a distal edge of the secondarylongitudinal portion of the second side member and extends in adirection generally perpendicular to the base member of the trough,wherein the cable guide extends laterally beyond the secondarylongitudinal portion of the second side member, and wherein the primarylongitudinal portion of the second side member extends laterally beyondthe cable guide; and the primary longitudinal portions of the sidemembers define a maximum width of the cable raceway and the widthdefined by the outermost surfaces of the cable guides is less than themaximum width of the cable raceway.

In a third aspect of the present invention, a rack for mountingelectronic equipment includes: a pair of vertical support members forsupporting at least one electronic component, wherein the verticalsupport members define a plurality of mounting locations; and a verticalcable raceway disposed generally adjacent one of the vertical supportmembers, the raceway having a trough and a plurality of outwardlyextending projections forming a plurality of cable rings, wherein eachcable ring is disposed at a height corresponding to one of the mountinglocations defined by the vertical support members.

In features of the third aspect, the mounting locations are disposed ata standard interval from each other; the standard interval correspondsto a whole number of standard rack mounting units; the standard intervalis a single standard rack mounting unit; a cable ring is disposedadjacent to each of substantially all of the mounting locations andaligned therewith; and each cable ring is disposed at a heightcorresponding to a whole number of standard rack mounting units.

The present invention also includes a method of routing cables in aequipment mounting rack, wherein the method includes the steps of:providing a rack having a plurality of equipment and accessory mountinglocations at positions corresponding to a standardized rack mountingunit; providing a vertical cable raceway having a trough and a pluralityof outwardly extending projections forming a plurality of cable rings;and attaching the raceway to the rack such that each cable ring isaligned with a mounting location.

In features of this method, the step of providing a rack includesproviding a rack having a plurality of equipment and accessory mountinglocations at intervals of one rack mounting unit; and the step ofproviding a vertical cable raceway includes providing a vertical cableraceway having a plurality of outwardly extending projections forming aplurality of cable rings disposed at intervals of one rack mountingunit.

In another aspect of the present invention, a rack for mountingelectronic equipment includes: a pair of vertical support members forsupporting at least one electronic component; a vertical cable racewaydisposed generally adjacent one of the vertical support members andhaving a trough and a plurality of outwardly extending projectionsforming a plurality of cable rings, wherein each projection includes areinforced base tapering to a narrow shaft and a crosspiece disposed atthe distal end of the shaft, wherein each cable ring and each shaft havea vertical dimension, and wherein the vertical dimension of each cablering is substantially larger than the vertical dimension of each shaft.

In features of this aspect, the vertical dimension of the each cablering is more than three times as large as the vertical dimension of eachshaft; and the distance between the centers of adjacent projections issubstantially equal to a standard rack mounting unit.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, a cable raceway forrouting cables to electronic equipment includes: a channel assemblyhaving a trough and a plurality of projections extending therefrom, theprojections for guiding cables laterally from a side of the trough,wherein each projection has a distal end; and a cover assembly having acover and a plurality of hinge supports, wherein the cover is disposedat the distal ends of the projections, wherein the structure of eachhinge support is reinforced relative to the structure of the projectionsto support the weight of the cover, and wherein each hinge support isdisposed adjacent to a plurality of projections.

In features of this aspect of the present invention, each hinge supporthas a proximal end and a distal end, the hinge support being supportedat its proximal end by the trough, and the distal end of the hingesupport supporting the cover; cable rings are formed by adjacent pairsof projections; the projections are generally T-shaped; a narrow gap isformed in each cable ring between adjacent projections, and the verticaldimension of the gap is substantially smaller than the verticaldimension of the cable ring; each hinge support includes a hinge and thecover may be hinged open and supported on the hinges; the projectionsare disposed at intervals substantially equal to one standard rackmounting unit; the hinge support has a vertical dimension substantiallyequivalent to the projection intervals; the trough defines two sides, atleast one hinge support is disposed along each side, and the cover maybe hinged open about the hinge supports on either side of the trough;and each hinge support has a vertical dimension substantially equal to asingle rack mounting unit.

In still another aspect of the present invention, a cable raceway forrouting cables to electronic equipment includes: a double-channelassembly having at least one base member and at least one pair of sidemembers, forming two separate back-to-back channels, and a plurality ofprojections extending from the side members for guiding cables laterallyfrom a side of the double-channel assembly; and a pair of coverassemblies, each having a cover having at least two lateral edges and atleast one hinge disposed along each lateral edge, wherein the cover maybe hinged open about the hinges along either lateral edge of the cover.

In a feature of this aspect, the cable raceway includes a plurality oflock assemblies, wherein each hinge has an individual lock assemblyassociated therewith, each lock assembly being selectively deployable inat least two states, wherein the deployable states include a lockedstate wherein the cover may be hinged open about the hinge correspondingto the lock assembly, and an unlocked state wherein the cover may beseparated from the channel at the hinge corresponding to the lockassembly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further features, embodiments, and advantages of the present inventionwill become apparent from the following detailed description withreference to the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vertical cable raceway in accordancewith a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the vertical cable raceway of FIG. 1 ina typical rack mounting arrangement;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a portion of the verticalcable raceway of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the vertical cable racewayof FIG. 2 illustrating the attachment of the cover assembly to thechannel assembly;

FIG. 5 is a top cross-sectional view of the vertical cable raceway ofFIG. 2 taken along line 5—5;

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of portions of the cover assemblyshown in FIG. 1, including the hinge/lock block assembly;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of the hinge block of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of the lock of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a vertical cable raceway in accordancewith a second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a vertical cable raceway in accordancewith a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vertical cable raceway 10 inaccordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.In this embodiment, the vertical cable raceway 10 comprises a channelassembly 20 and a cover assembly 60. The channel assembly 20 includes atrough 22 and a plurality of cable guides 36. The trough 22 has a basemember 24 and two side members 26, 28 extending perpendicularlytherefrom. The trough 22 may be formed from a sheet of suitable metal,such as aluminum or steel, and bent into shape, or it may be machined orextruded from a suitable metal material. As perhaps best illustrated inFIG. 3, each side member 26, 28 includes a plurality of circularapertures 30 for mounting the trough 22 to a rack 12, frame, cabinet orthe like, as shown in FIG. 2, and an evenly-spaced series of smallrectangular apertures 32 extending along its outer edge for mounting thecable guides 36 thereto.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a portion of the verticalcable raceway 10 of FIG. 1. Each cable guide 36 includes a linearprojection support bracket 38 and a plurality of T-shaped projections 40extending therefrom. The projection support bracket 38 has a planarflange 42 and a series of tabs 44 forming a channeled recess 46therebetween. Evenly-spaced bosses 48 are disposed on the inward-facingsurfaces of at least some of the tabs 44 for mating with the rectangularapertures 32 in the side members 26, 28 of the trough 22. The cableguide 36 may be mounted on a side member 26, 28 of the trough 22 byaligning the bosses 48 on the tabs 44 with the rectangular apertures 32in the trough 22 and then inserting the side member 26, 28 into thechanneled recess 46 between the planar flange 42 and the series of tabs44. As the side member 26, 28 is inserted, the bosses 48, which arepreferably beveled, may make contact with the side member 26, 28, thusurging the lateral deflection of the tabs 44. As the edge of the sidemember 26, 28 is seated in the bottom of the channeled recess 46, thebosses 48 spring back into the rectangular apertures 32 and arethereafter retained therein, thus preventing the cable guide 36 frombeing removed.

In a feature of the present invention, one or more slots 34 may extendinward from the edge of each side member 26, 28, and at least onepositioning boss 35 may be disposed on each projection support bracket38. Alignment of the cable guide 36 with the side member 26, 28 may thenbe facilitated by aligning the positioning boss 35 with the slot 34 andinserting it therein. This causes the other bosses 48 to be properlyaligned with the rectangular apertures 32, and the continuingdisposition of the positioning boss 35 within the slot 34 aids inguiding the cable guide 36 onto the edge of the side member 26, 28 untilfully seated thereon.

Each T-shaped projection 40 includes a reinforced base 50, a shaft 52and a crosspiece 54. Each pair of adjacent T-shaped projections 40defines a cable ring 56 formed by the respective bases 50, shafts 52 andcrosspieces 54 of the projections 40 and the body of the projectionsupport bracket 38. An opening into each cable ring 56 is provided by agap 58 between the ends of the crosspieces 54 of each pair of adjacentprojections 40. This gap 58 permits cables to be inserted into the ring56 by passing them sideways through the gap 58, as described furtherhereinbelow.

The respective projections 40 are evenly spaced along the length of thecable guide 36 at a standardized spacing. In the embodiment shown anddescribed, the spacing between the respective projections 40 is equal toa single standard rack mounting unit (“RMU”), but it should be obviousthat other standard spacings could be used such as spacings measured inalternative units or spacings which are multiples of the RMU. By usingsuch a standard spacing, it is ensured that a cable ring 56 is disposedat, and dedicated to, each RMU along the height of a rack 12. Thebenefit of this will become further evident below.

Because the cable guide 36 is formed separately from the trough 22 andsubsequently attached thereto, rather than being formed integrallytherewith, the cable guide 36 may be formed from a different materialthan the trough 22. Thus, although the trough 22 may preferably beformed from metal, the cable guides 36 may be injection-molded fromplastic in order to create rounded or beveled edges along the edges ofthe T-shaped projections 40. The rounded edges of the cable rings 56 donot chafe cables inserted therein like the sharp metal edges of priorart raceways would, while the rounded edges and corners of the edges ofthe ends of the crosspieces 54 enable cables being installed in thecable rings 56 to be smoothly guided through the gaps 58. In addition,by forming the shafts 52 of the projections 40 from plastic rather thanfrom sheet metal, the width of the shafts 52 may be reduced while stillproviding the requisite strength and resiliency, thus allowing the cablerings 56 to be widened considerably relative to the width of the shafts52. As a result, each cable ring 36 includes a C-shaped opening havingconcave top and bottom portions and a narrow entry gap 58 relative tothe width and height of the ring 56, thus maximizing the utility of thecable ring 56 in receiving and retaining a greater number of cablestherein than was previously possible.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the vertical cable raceway10 of FIG. 2 illustrating the attachment of the cover assembly 60 to thechannel assembly 20. The cover assembly 60 includes a cover 62 and aplurality of hinge supports 64. The cover 62 may be formed from sheetmetal. Flanges 66 are formed along the lateral edges of the cover 62 toprovide strength along the length of the cover 62 as well as for usewith the hinging mechanism of the hinge supports 64 as described below.The cover 62 also includes a plurality of openings 68, perhaps bestillustrated in FIG. 6, for use with the hinge supports 64. Each hingesupport 64 includes a cover support 70, a cover support bracket 72 and ahinge/lock block assembly 74.

Referring again to FIG. 3, each cover support 70, which may beinjection-molded from plastic, includes a body portion 76, a hinge pivotshaft 78 disposed at one end of the body portion 76 and inner and outermounting tabs 80, 82 disposed at the opposite end. The hinge pivot shaft78 may be supported by support members 84 which are inwardly offset tocreate a channeled area 86 between the end of the body portion 76 andthe hinge pivot shaft 78, perhaps best illustrated in FIG. 5. Thischanneled area 86 is adapted to receive the edge of one of the flanges66 along the lateral edges of the cover 62 when the cover 62 is hingedopen, as further described hereinbelow.

Like the channel 46 formed by the tabs 44 of the projection supportbracket 38, a channeled recess 88 is formed between the inner and outermounting tabs 80, 82 of the cover support 70, as perhaps best shown inFIG. 5. A boss 90 is disposed on the inward-facing surface of the outertab 82 for mating with one of the rectangular apertures 32 in the sidemembers 26, 28 of the trough 22. The cover support 70 may be mounted ona side member 26, 28 of the trough 22, adjacent to one or more cableguides 36 by aligning the boss 90 on the inward-facing surface of theouter tab 82 with a rectangular aperture 32 in the trough 22 and theninserting the side member 26, 28 into the channeled recess 88 betweenthe inner and outer tabs 80, 82. As the side member 26, 28 is inserted,the boss 90, which is preferably beveled, may make contact with the sidemember 26, 28, thus urging the lateral deflection of the outer tab 82.As the edge of the side member 26, 28 is seated in the bottom of thechanneled recess 88, the boss 90 springs back into the rectangularaperture 32 and is thereafter retained therein, thus preventing thecover support 70 from being removed. Further strength may be imparted bypassing fasteners through mounting apertures in the cover supports 70and the trough 22.

The shape of the sides of the body portion 76 is similar to the shape ofthe sides of the T-shaped projections 40. Each side of the body portion76, together with the T-shaped projection 40 adjacent thereto, defines acable ring 56 formed by the base 50, shaft 52 and crosspiece 54 of theadjacent projection 40 and the correspondingly-shaped side of the bodyportion 76. An opening into each cable ring 56 is provided by a gap 58between the end of the crosspiece 54 of the adjacent T-shaped projection40 and the similar protrusion on the side of the body portion 76. Thisgap 58 permits cables to be inserted into the ring 56 by passing themsideways through the gap 58, as described further hereinbelow. The coversupport 70 is preferably one RMU in size, and the cable rings 56 formedabove and below it are preferably of the same dimensions as the cablerings 56 formed by the cable guides 36. Once again, the benefit of thiswill become further evident below.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 5, the cover support 70 may be furtherstrengthened by the use of a cover support bracket 72 formed from sheetmetal. A tab 92 may be disposed at one end of the bracket 72 to beinserted into an undercut 91 in the end of the body portion 76 of thecover support 70, and the body of the cover support bracket 72 may restagainst the body portion 76 of the cover support 70. In this position,the end of the cover support bracket 72 is disposed between, andsubstantially coplanar with, the inner mounting tabs 80 of the coversupport 70. The same fasteners used to secure the outer mounting tab 82of the cover support 70 to the side member 26, 28 of the trough 22 mayalso be used to attach the cover support bracket 72 on the oppositesurface of the side member 26, 28.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of portions of the cover assembly60 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of the hingeblock 94 of FIG. 6. Each hinge/lock block assembly 74 includes a hingeblock 94 and a lock assembly 96. The hinge block 94 has a pair oflocating bosses 98, a lock boss 100, a lock stop 102, a pivot face 104disposed in a recessed area between two inwardly facing support faces105, and a lock knob hole 106. The block 94 is installed on the insideof the cover 62 with the lock boss 100 and locating bosses 98 protrudingthrough openings 68 in the cover 62. The lock assembly 96 includes alock 108, a lock knob 110 and a wave spring washer 112. The lock knob110 includes a recessed area 114, a lock knob shaft 116 having a pair oflock knob slots 118 therein, and an axial central hole 120. The springwasher 112 is retained around the shaft 116 in the recessed area 114 tofrictionally maintain the lock 108 in the desired disposition, and theshaft 116 is inserted through the lock knob hole 106 in the hinge block94 with the washer 112 disposed between the knob 110 and the outsidesurface of the cover 62.

FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of the lock 108 of FIG. 6. The lock108 has a center hole 122, a first rib 124 on the inside of the centerhole 122, a pair of lock stops or ribs 126 outside the center hole 122,a circular groove 128 extending circumferentially between the lock stops126, a screw hole 130 and a lock hook 132. Referring again to FIG. 6,the center hole 122 mounts onto the lock knob shaft 116 with the rib 124in one of the lock knob slots 118. The lock 108 is positioned so thatthe hinge block lock stop 102 is trapped in the circular groove 128formed between the lock stops 126, the length of which serves to limitthe rotation of the knob 110 and to define the open and closed positionsof the lock 108. A screw is installed through the screw hole 130 andinto the central hole 120 of the lock knob 110 to retain it thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, at least two hinge/lock block assemblies 74are disposed along each lateral edge of the cover 62 to enable the cover62 to be hinged open on either lateral edge, as illustrated in FIG. 2. Acover support 70 and cover support bracket 72 corresponding to eachhinge/lock block assembly 74 are disposed at appropriate locations onthe trough 22. Referring again to FIG. 5, the cover 62 may then bemounted onto the trough 22 by first placing the locks 108 along at leastone lateral edge of the cover 62 in their open positions. The cover 62is then positioned so that each corresponding cover support hinge pivotshaft 78 is trapped between the flange 66 along that lateral edge of thecover 62 and the pivot face 104 of the hinge block 94. The vertical loadof the cover 62 is supported by one of the hinge block support faces 105resting on the end of the hinge pivot shaft 78. Once the hinge/lockblock assemblies 74 are placed in this position, the lock knobs 110 maybe rotated to their closed positions. In the closed position, each lockhook 132 is positioned over its respective hinge pivot shaft 78 andbetween the support members 84. When so closed, the hinge pivot shaft 78thus functions as a pin enclosed within a generally cylindrical barrelformed by the lock hook 132, the cover flange 66, and the hinge blockpivot face 104. The cylindrical shape of the barrel is created by thearcuate surfaces of the hinge block pivot face 104 and the underside ofthe lock hook 132. In this arrangement, the axis of rotation of eachlock knob 110 is generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation of thehinge block 94 about the cover support hinge pivot shaft 78.

In a preferred embodiment, the cover support 70 and cover supportbrackets 72 of the hinge/lock block assemblies 74 are interspersedbetween cable guides 36 along the side members of the trough 22, asillustrated in FIG. 2. Because all of the cable rings 56 formed alongthe cable guides 36, all of the cable rings 56 formed between the endsof the cable guides 36 and the cover supports 70 disposed therebetween,and all of the cover supports 70 themselves are preferably each a singleRMU in vertical length, each cable ring 56 is thus disposed at aparticular RMU segment location along the rack 12 to which the verticalcable raceway 10 is attached. Further, as described previously,electrical components and accessories such as horizontal raceways 16,patch panels (not shown) and other cable routing apparatuses arefrequently sized and measured in whole numbers of RMU's. Thus, byinstalling such components and accessories at particular RMU segmentlocations along the rack 12, an installer can be assured that at leastone cable ring 56 will substantially always be located laterallyadjacent to each component or accessory so installed. In an exception tothis arrangement, a component or accessory having a height of only asingle RMU and disposed immediately adjacent one of the cover supports70 may not have a cable ring 56 located laterally adjacent thereto.Thus, for example, a rack 12 of 45 RMU to which is attached a verticalcable raceway 10 that uses a cover assembly 60 having three hingesupports similar to the hinge supports 64 illustrated herein would haveforty-two usable cable rings 56, meaning that 93% of the RMU's in therack 12 would have a cable ring 56 immediately adjacent thereto.Similarly, a rack 12 of 20 RMU which uses a cover assembly 60 having twohinge supports similar to the hinge supports 64 illustrated herein wouldhave eighteen usable cable rings 56, meaning that 90% of the RMU's inthe rack 12 would have a cable ring 56 immediately adjacent thereto. Itshould be understood, however, that cable supports 70 may alternativelybe designed with a structure forming a cable ring 56 without departingfrom the scope of the present invention.

In operation, the vertical cable raceway 10 may be attached to the sideof a rack 12 using some or all of the circular apertures 30 in one sidemember 26, 28 of the trough 22 and suitable fasteners. As illustrated,the rack 12 may include one or more pairs of vertical support members 14to which the raceway 10 may be attached directly, or the raceway 10 mayalternatively be mounted adjacent the vertical support members 14 usingsome other additional support structure (not shown). With the cover 62either hinged open on the side of the raceway 10 adjacent to the rack orremoved entirely, cables may easily be installed vertically through theraceway 10 merely by moving the cables sideways into the trough 22. Ifone or more cable needs to be routed horizontally from the trough 22 toa component or accessory installed on or in the rack, each such cablemay be bent and inserted sideways through the gap 58 in one of the cablerings 56 immediately adjacent to the chosen component or accessory.Other cables may likewise be routed through the same cable ring 56, adifferent cable ring 56 to the same component or accessory, or to adifferent location altogether. Once all cable routing in both thevertical and horizontal directions is complete, the cover 62 may then beclosed, in order to retain the respective cables in place, by eitherhinging the cover 62 closed and locking it as described previously, orby installing the unattached cover 62 on the cover supports 70, also asdescribed previously.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a vertical cable raceway 210 inaccordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.In this embodiment, the vertical cable raceway 210 comprises adouble-channel assembly 220 and a pair of cover assemblies 60. Thedouble-channel assembly 220 includes a double-trough 222 and two sets ofcable guides 36. The double-trough 222 has a base member 24 and twodouble-side members 226, 228 extending perpendicularly therefrom,thereby forming two separate, back-to-back channels from a double-trough222 having an H-shaped cross-section. The cable guides 36 and all othercomponents of the raceway 210 of the second preferred embodiment areidentical to those of the raceway 10 of the first preferred embodiment,with the second set of components being assembled and utilized in thesame way as the first except in reverse.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a vertical cable raceway 310 inaccordance with a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.In this embodiment, the vertical cable raceway 310 comprises a modifiedsingle-channel assembly 320 and a cover assembly 60. The modifiedchannel assembly includes an alternative trough 322 and a set of cableguides 36. The alternative trough 322 has a base member 24 and twomodified side members 326, 328 extending perpendicularly therefrom.Unlike the trough 22 of the first preferred embodiment, each side member326, 328 is bifurcated into primary and secondary planar members 325,327 by a pair of closely spaced longitudinal bends 329. The secondaryplanar member 327 of each side member 326, 328 is thus offset slightlyinward from, but parallel to, the primary planar member 325 of the sidemember 326, 328. The offset provides sufficient lateral space toaccommodate the width of the cable guides 36 and cover supports 70 suchthat, when mounted on the trough 322, they do not extend beyond theoutermost surfaces of the side members 326, 328. This feature thus helpsto prevent the components of the raceway 310 from interfering with therack 12 and the components and cables mounted thereon. The coverassembly 60, cable guides 36 and all other components of the raceway 310of the third preferred embodiment are identical to those of the raceway10 of the first preferred embodiment. Also, it should be obvious to oneof ordinary skill in the art that the double-channel assembly 220 may besimilarly modified.

It will therefore be readily understood by those persons skilled in theart that the present invention is susceptible of broad utility andapplication. Many embodiments and adaptations of the present inventionother than those herein described, as well as many variations,modifications and equivalent arrangements, will be apparent from orreasonably suggested by the present invention and the foregoingdescription thereof, without departing from the substance or scope ofthe present invention. Accordingly, while the present invention has beendescribed herein in detail in relation to its preferred embodiments, itis to be understood that this disclosure is only illustrative andexemplary of the present invention and is made merely for purposes ofproviding a full and enabling disclosure of the invention. The foregoingdisclosure is not intended or to be construed to limit the presentinvention or otherwise to exclude any such other embodiments,adaptations, variations, modifications and equivalent arrangements, thepresent invention being limited only by the claims appended hereto andthe equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A rack for mounting electronic equipment, therack comprising: a pair of vertical support members for supporting atleast one electronic component, wherein each of the vertical supportmembers includes a regular pattern of mounting apertures that repeatslinearly at a first regular interval; and a vertical cable racewaydisposed generally adjacent one of the vertical support members, theraceway including: a trough; and a plurality of outwardly extendingprojections forming a plurality of cable rings, wherein the cable ringsare disposed at a second regular interval along the length of theraceway, and wherein the second regular interval is a whole numbermultiple of the first regular interval.
 2. The rack of claim 1, whereineach instance of the pattern of mounting apertures includes a pluralityof mounting apertures.
 3. The rack of claim 2, wherein the first regularinterval corresponds to a whole number of standard rack mounting units.4. The rack of claim 3, wherein the first regular interval is a singlestandard rack mounting unit.
 5. The rack of claim 1, wherein each cablering is disposed adjacent to a single instance of the pattern ofmounting apertures and aligned therewith.
 6. The rack of claim 1,wherein the second regular interval corresponds to a whole number ofstandard rack mounting units.
 7. A method of routing cables in anequipment mounting rack, the method comprising the steps of: providing arack having a series of mounting apertures arranged in a plurality ofsets, thereby forming a regular pattern of apertures that repeatsvertically at a first regular interval; providing a vertical cableraceway having a trough and a plurality of outwardly extendingprojections forming a plurality of cable rings, wherein the cable ringsare disposed at a second regular interval along the length of theraceway, and wherein the second regular interval is a whole numbermultiple of the first regular interval; and attaching the raceway to therack such that each cable ring is aligned with one set of mountingapertures.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first regular intervalis one standard rack mounting unit.
 9. The method of claim 8, whereinthe second regular interval is one standard rack mounting unit.
 10. Arack for mounting electronic equipment, the rack comprising: at leastone pair of vertical support members for supporting at least oneelectronic component, the vertical support members defining the sides ofthe rack; a vertical cable raceway disposed generally adjacent one ofthe sides of the rack, the raceway including: a trough; and a pluralityof outwardly extending projections forming a plurality of cable rings,wherein each projection includes a reinforced base tapering to a narrowshaft and a crosspiece disposed at the distal end of the shaft, whereineach cable ring and each shaft have a vertical dimension, and whereinthe vertical dimension of each cable ring is substantially larger thanthe vertical dimension of each shaft.
 11. The rack of claim 10, whereinthe vertical dimension of the each cable ring is more than three timesas large as the vertical dimension of each shaft.
 12. The rack of claim10, wherein the distance between the centers of adjacent projections issubstantially equal to a standard rack mounting unit.